Florida Escapes: Active Hurricane Season Ends

December 1, 2010

Florida property owners again dodged a bullet as the 2010 hurricane season officially ended at midnight Tuesday.

But lawmakers are already eyeing changes to reduce the state’s exposure and shore up the fund that helps pay claims in the event of a major storm, a package of which was vetoed by Gov. Charlie Crist earlier this year. It’s been five years since a hurricane made landfall in Florida, a historic hiatus that David Halstead, director of the Division of Emergency Management, said Tuesday should not lull Floridians into a sense of complacency.

The 2010 Atlantic hurricane season was actually one of the most active on record, with 19 named storms. Climatic conditions brought on by a La Nina weather pattern helped protect the United States from landfall.

But, to the chagrin of both homeowners and insurers, state officials cautioned Tuesday that there’s a downside to that – those same conditions could make already dry Florida a tinderbox over the next several months, ripe for wildfires.

In the Atlantic Basin a total of 19 named storms formed – tied with 1887 and 1995 for third highest on record. Of those, 12 became hurricanes – tied with 1969 for second highest on record. Five of those reached major hurricane status of Category 3 or higher.

These totals are within the ranges predicted in NOAA’s seasonal outlooks issued on May 27 (14-23 named storms; 8-14 hurricanes; 3-7 major hurricanes) and August 5 (14-20 named storms; 8-12 hurricanes; 4-6 major hurricanes). An average Atlantic season produces 11 named storms, six hurricanes and two major hurricanes.

Pictured above: The storms of the 2010 Atlantic hurricane season. Click to enlarge into a more detailed map.

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Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under News